The Bronze Age is, with respect to a given prehistoric society, the period in that society when the most advanced metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use) included smelting copper and tin from naturally-occurring outcroppings of copper and tin ores, creating a bronze alloy by melting those metals together, and casting them into bronze artifacts. The Bronze Age also included the domestication of the horse. Iron Age Axe found on Gotland In archaeology, the Iron Age is the stage in the development of any people where the use of iron implements as tools and weapons is preeminent. ... Stonehenge, England, erected by Neolithic peoples ca. ... Turned chess pieces Metalworking is the craft and practice of working with metals to create structures or machine parts. ... Electric phosphate smelting furnace in a TVA chemical plant (1942) Chemical reduction, or smelting, is a form of extractive metallurgy. ... For other uses, see Copper (disambiguation). ... This article is about the metallic chemical element. ... For other uses, see Ore (disambiguation). ... This article is about the metal alloy. ... Steel is a metal alloy whose major component is iron, with carbon content between 0. ... In archaeology, an artifact or artefact is any object made or modified by a human culture, and often one later recovered by some archaeological endeavor. ... There are a number of theories regarding the domestication of the horse. ...

As regard to metal working, the naturally-occurring ores typically included arsenic as a common impurity. Copper/tin ores are rare, as reflected in the fact that there were no tin bronzes in western Asia before 3000 BCE. The Bronze Age is regarded as the second part of a three-age system for prehistoric societies, though there are some cultures that have extensive written records during their Bronze Age. In this system, in some areas of the world the Bronze Age followed the Neolithic age. On the other hand, in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa, the Neolithic age is directly followed by the Iron Age.^{[citation needed]} In some parts of the world, a Copper Age follows the Neolithic Age and precedes the Bronze Age. General Name, Symbol, Number arsenic, As, 33 Chemical series metalloids Group, Period, Block 15, 4, p Appearance metallic gray Standard atomic weight 74. ... BCE is a TLA that may stand for: Before the Common Era, date notation equivalent to BC (e. ... The three-age system is a system of classifying human prehistory into three consecutive time periods, named for their respective predominant tool-making technologies: The Stone Age The Bronze Age The Iron Age The system is most apt in describing the progression of European society, although it has been used... An array of Neolithic artifacts, including bracelets, axe heads, chisels, and polishing tools. ... Satellite image of Africa, showing the ecological break that defines the sub-Saharan area Sub-Saharan Africa is a geographical term used to describe the area of the African continent which lies south of the Sahara, or those African countries which are fully or partially located south of the Sahara. ... An array of Neolithic artifacts, including bracelets, axe heads, chisels, and polishing tools. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland In archaeology, the Iron Age is the stage in the development of any people where the use of iron implements as tools and weapons is preeminent. ... The Chalcolithic (Greek khalkos + lithos copper stone) period or Copper Age period (also known as the Eneolithic (Aeneolithic)), is a phase in the development of human culture in which the use of early metal tools appeared alongside the use of stone tools. ...

Origins

The place and time of the invention of bronze are controversial. It is possible that bronzing was invented independently in the Maykop culture in the North Caucasus as far back as the mid 4th millennium BCE, which would make them the makers of the oldest known bronze; but others date the same Maykop artifacts to the mid 3rd millennium BCE. However, the Maykop culture only had arsenic bronze, which is a naturally occurring alloy. Tin bronze, which developed later, requires more sophisticated production techniques; tin has to be mined (mainly as the tin ore cassiterite) and smelted separately, then added to molten copper to make the bronze alloy. The Bronze Age was a time of heavy metal usage. The Maykop culture, ca. ... North Caucasus in Russia The North Caucasus (sometimes referred to as Ciscaucasia or Ciscaucasus) is the northern part of the Caucasus region between Europe and Asia. ... Cassiterite is a tin oxide mineral, SnO2. ...

Near East

Bronze Age weaponry and ornaments

Periodization for the Bronze Age in the Ancient Near East is as follows: Overview map of the ancient Near East The terms ancient Near East or ancient Orient encompass the early civilizations predating classical antiquity in the region roughly corresponding to that described by the modern term Middle East (Egypt, Iraq, Turkey, Israel, Palestinian Authority, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria), during the time roughly spanning...

Mesopotamia

In Mesopotamia, the Bronze Age begins at about 2900 BCE in the late Uruk period, spanning the Early Dynastic period of Sumer, the Akkadian Empire, the Old Babylonian and Old Assyrian periods and the period of Kassite hegemony. Mesopotamia was a cradle of civilization geographically located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq. ... The Uruk period (ca. ... The history of Sumer, taken to include the prehistoric Ubaid and Uruk periods, spans the 5th to 3rd millennia BC, ending with the downfall of the Third Dynasty of Ur around 2004 BC, followed by a transition period of Amorite states before the rise of Babylonia in the 18th century... The Akkadian Empire usually refers to the Semitic speaking state that grew up around the city of Akkad north of Sumer, and reached its greatest extent under Sargon of Akkad. ... The term Old Babylonian is a period in Mesopotamian history that refers, roughly, to the period between the end of the Third Dynasty of Ur (c. ... Old Assyrian refers to the Old Assyrian period of the Ancient Near East, ca. ... // The Kassites were a Near-Eastern mountain tribe which migrated to the Zagros Mountains and Mesopotamia (present Doroud) in 3000 and 4000 BC.[1] They spoke a non-Indo-European, non-Semitic language. ...

Ancient Egypt

In Ancient Egypt, the Bronze Age begins in the Protodynastic period, c. 3150 BCE. The pyramids are among the most recognizable symbols of the civilization of ancient Egypt. ... The Protodynastic Period of Egypt refers to the period of time at the very end of the Predynastic Period. ...

• Early Bronze Age
  • Early Dynastic Period of Egypt
  • Old Kingdom
  • First Intermediate Period of Egypt
• Middle Bronze Age
  • Middle Kingdom of Egypt
  • Second Intermediate Period of Egypt (Hyksos)
• Late Bronze Age
  • New Kingdom

The Early Dynastic Period of Egypt is taken to include the First and Second Dynasties, lasting from 2920 BC, following the Protodynastic Period of Egypt, until 2575 BC, or the beginning of the Old Kingdom. ... The Old Kingdom is the name commonly given to that period in the 3rd millennium BC when Egypt attained its first continuous peak of civilization in complexity and achievement – this was the first of three so-called Kingdom periods, which mark the high points of civilization in the lower Nile... The First Intermediate Period is the name conventionally given by Egyptologists to that period in Ancient Egyptian history between the end of the Old Kingdom and the advent of the Middle Kingdom. ... The Middle Kingdom is the period in the history of ancient Egypt stretching from the establishment of the Eleventh Dynasty to the end of the Fourteenth Dynasty, roughly between 2030 BC and 1640 BC. The period comprises two phases, the 11th Dynasty, which ruled from Thebes and the 12th Dynasty... The Second Intermediate Period marks a period when Ancient Egypt once again fell into disarray between the end of the Middle Kingdom, and the start of the New Kingdom. ... An image representing the Egyptian pharaoh Ahmose I defeating the Hyksos in battle. ... The maximum territorial extent of Egypt (XVth century BC) The New Kingdom, sometimes referred to as the Egyptian Empire, is the period in ancient Egyptian history between the 16th century BC and the 11th century BC, covering the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Dynasties of Egypt. ...

Levant

• Early Bronze Age
  • Ebla
• Middle Bronze Age
  • Amorites
• Late Bronze Age
  • Mitanni
  • Ugarit
  • Aramaeans

Map of Canaan For other uses, see Canaan (disambiguation). ... The following is a refined listing of Levantive archeological periods, expanded from the basic three-age system with finer subdivisions and extension into the modern historical period. ... Ebla is not to be confused with Elba. ... Amorite (Hebrew ’emōrî, Egyptian Amar, Akkadian Amurrū (corresponding to Sumerian MAR.TU or Martu) refers to a Semitic people who occupied the middle Euphrates area from the second half of the third millennium BC and also appear in the Tanakh. ... Kingdom of Mitanni Mitanni (cuneiform KUR URUMi-it-ta-ni, also Mittani Mi-ta-an-ni, in Assyrian sources Hanigalbat, Khanigalbat cuneiform Ḫa-ni-gal-bat ) was a Hurrian kingdom in northern Mesopotamia from ca. ... Excavated ruins at Ras Shamra. ... The Aramaeans, or Arameans, were a Semitic, semi-nomadic and pastoralist people who originated and had lived in upper Mesopotamia and Syria. ...

Anatolia

• Hittite Empire
• Arzawa
• Assuwa

Arzawa is a region or kingdom in what was later to be known as Lydia in Western Anatolia. ... The Assuwa league was a confederation of states in western Anatolia, defeated by the Hittites under Tudhaliya IV around 1250 BC. The league had been formed to oppose the failing Hittite empire. ...

Persian Plateau

• Elam
• Konar Sandal
• Kulli culture
• Tappeh Sialk
• BMAC

The Iranian plateau covers much of Iran and Afghanistan. ... Elam (Persian: تمدن ایلام) is one of the oldest recorded civilizations. ... Prehistoric culture in Southern Baluchistan, Pakistan about 2500 - 2000 BC. This culture is named after an archaeological site discovered by Sir Aurel Stein. ... The Bactria-Margiana Archaeological Complex (or BMAC, also known as the Oxus civilization) is a modern archaeologists designation for a Bronze Age Turkmenistan. ...

Caucasus

Some scholars date some arsenical bronze artifacts of the Maykop culture in the North Caucasus as far back as the mid 4th millennium BCE.^[1] The Maykop culture, ca. ... North Caucasus in Russia The North Caucasus (sometimes referred to as Ciscaucasia or Ciscaucasus) is the northern part of the Caucasus region between Europe and Asia. ...

Central Asia

The Altai Mountains in what is now southern Russia and central China have been identified as the point of origin of a cultural enigma termed the Seima-Turbino Phenomenon.^[2] It is conjectured that climatic problems in this region around the start of the second millennium BCE created ecological, economic and political changes which triggered a rapid and massive migration of peoples westward into northeast Europe and eastward into southeast China, Vietnam and Thailand across a frontier of some 4,000 miles.^[2] This migration took place in just five to six generations and led to peoples from Finland in the west to Thailand in the east employing the same metal working technology and, in some areas, horse breeding and riding. ^[2] It is further conjectured that this phenomenon may have been the medium through which the Uralic group of languages spread across Europe and Asia, ultimately producing 39 modern languages including Hungarian, Finnish, Estonian and Lappish.^[2] Katun River in the Altay Mountains The Altay Mountains (Russian: ; Mongolian: , Altai) are a mountain range in central Asia, where Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan come together, and where the rivers Irtysh, Ob and Yenisei have their sources. ... The 2nd millennium BC marks the transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age. ... Sami is a general name for a group of Finno-Ugric languages spoken in parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia, in Northern Europe. ...

Indus valley

The Bronze Age on the Indian subcontinent began around 3300 BCE with the beginning of the Indus Valley civilization. Inhabitants of the ancient Indus Valley, the Harappans, developed new techniques in metallurgy and produced copper, bronze, lead and tin. Excavated ruins of Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan. ... Map of South Asia (see note) This article deals with the geophysical region in Asia. ... Excavated ruins of Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan. ... Location of Harappa in the Indus Valley. ...

The Indian Bronze Age ends at the start of the Iron Age Vedic Period (1500–500 BCE). This is during the Harappan culture, which dates from 1700 BCE to 1300 BCE, that overlaps the transition period between the Bronze Age, and the Iron Age period. As a result, it is difficult to pinpoint the true end of the Indian Bronze Age.

Far East

China

A two-handled bronze gefuding gui, from the Chinese Shang Dynasty (1600–1046 BCE).

Historians disagree about the dates that should be attached to a “Bronze Age” in China. The difficulty lies in the term “Bronze Age” itself, as it has been applied to signify a period in European and Middle Eastern history when bronze tools replaced stone tools, and were later replaced by iron ones. In those places, the medium of the new “Age” made that of the old obsolete. In China, however, any attempt to establish a definite set of dates for a Bronze Age is complicated by two factors: the early arrival of iron smelting technology and the persistence of bronze in tools, weapons and sacred vessels. The earliest bronze artifacts are found in the Majiayao culture site (between 3100 and 2700 BCE), and from then on the society gradually grew into the Bronze Age Remnants of advanced, stratified societies dating back to the Shang period have been found in the Yellow River Valley. ... The Majiayao culture (馬家窯文化) is a name given by archaeologists to a group of Neolithic communities who lived primarily in the upper Yellow River region in Gansu and Qinghai, China. ...

Bronze metallurgy in China originated in what is referred to as the Erlitou (also Erh-li-t’ou) period, which some historians argue places it within the range of dates controlled by the Shang dynasty.^[3] Others believe the Erlitou sites belong to the preceding Xia (also Shia) dynasty.^[4] The U.S. National Gallery of Art defines the Chinese Bronze Age as the “period between about 2000 BC and 771 BCE,” a period that begins with Erlitou culture and ends abruptly with the disintegration of Western Zhou rule.^[5] Though this provides a concise frame of reference, it overlooks the continued importance of bronze in Chinese metallurgy and culture. Since this is significantly later than the discovery of bronze in Mesopotamia, bronze technology could have been imported rather than discovered independently in China.^{[citation needed][6]} Neolithic culture (1900–1350 BC) of the central plains of northern China. ... Remnants of advanced, stratified societies dating back to the Shang period have been found in the Yellow River Valley. ... For the Sixteen Kingdoms Period state, see Xia (Sixteen Kingdoms). ... The West building of the National Gallery of Art with the East building visible behind and to to the left The National Gallery of Art is an art museum, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The museum was established in 1937 by the Congress, with funds for... Alternative meaning: Zhou Dynasty (690 CE - 705 CE) The Zhou Dynasty (周朝; Wade-Giles: Chou Dynasty) (late 10th century BC to late 9th century BC - 256 BC) followed the Shang (Yin) Dynasty and preceded the Qin Dynasty in China. ...

Chinese pu bronze vessel with interlaced dragon design, Spring and Autumn Period (722–481 BCE)

Iron is found in the Zhou period, but its use is minimal. Chinese literature dating to the 6th century BCE attests a knowledge of iron smelting, possibly making iron a Chinese invention, yet bronze continues to occupy the seat of significance in the archaeological and historical record for some time after this.^[7] Historian W. C. White argues that iron did not supplant bronze “at any period before the end of the Zhou dynasty (481 BCE)” and that bronze vessels make up the majority of metal vessels all the way through the Later Han period, or through CE 221.^[8] Japanese name Hiragana: KyÅ«jitai: Shinjitai: Korean name Hangul: Hanja: Vietnamese name Quốc ngữ: Hán tá»±: The Chinese dragon is visualized as a long, scaled, snake-like creature with five claws. ... The Spring and Autumn Period (Chinese: ; Pinyin: ) was a period in Chinese history, which roughly corresponds to the first half of the Eastern Zhou dynasty (from the second half of the 8th century BC to the first half of the 5th century). ... CE is an abbreviation which can have the following meanings: Capillary electrophoresis the CE mark is a stylized CE placed on products to signify conformance with European Union regulations. ...

The Chinese bronze artifacts generally are either utilitarian, like spear points or adze heads, or ritualistic, like the numerous large sacrificial tripods. However, even some of the most utilitarian objects bear the markings of more sacred items. The Chinese inscribed all kinds of bronze items with three main motif types: demons, symbolic animals, and abstract symbols.^[9] Some large bronzes also bear inscriptions that have helped historians and archaeologists piece together the history of China, especially during the Zhou period.

The bronzes of the Western Zhou period document large portions of history not found in the extant texts, and often were composed by persons of varying rank and possibly even social class. Further, the medium of cast bronze lends the record they preserve a permanence not enjoyed by manuscripts.^[10] These inscriptions can commonly be subdivided into four parts: a reference to the date and place, the naming of the event commemorated, the list of gifts given to the artisan in exchange for the bronze, and a dedication.^[11] The relative points of reference these vessels provide have enabled historians to place most of the vessels within a certain time frame of the Western Zhou period, allowing them to trace the evolution of the vessels and the events they record.^[12]

Southeast Asia

Dating back to the Neolithic Age,the first bronze drums, called the Dong Son drums have been uncovered in and around the Red River Delta regions of Vietnam and Southern China. These relate to the prehistoric Dong Son Culture of Vietnam. The Neolithic, (Greek neos=new, lithos=stone, or New Stone Age) is traditionally the last part of the stone age. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... Drum from Sông Đà, Vietnam. ...

Song Da bronze drum's surface, Dong Son culture, Vietnam

In Ban Chiang, Thailand, (Southeast Asia) bronze artifacts have been discovered dating to 2100 BCE.^[13] Drum from Sông Đà, Vietnam. ... Ban Chiang (Thai บ้านเชียง) is an archeological site located in the Udon Thani province, Thailand, at 17°32′55″N, 103°21′30″E. It is listed in the UNESCO world heritage list since 1992. ... Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ... In archaeology, an artifact or artefact is any object made or modified by a human culture, and often one later recovered by some archaeological endeavor. ...

In Nyaunggan, Burma bronze tools have been excavated along with ceramics and stone artifacts. Dating is still currently broad (3500–500 BCE).^[14]

Korean peninsula

The Middle Mumun pottery period culture of the southern Korean Peninsula gradually adopted bronze production (c. 700–600? BCE) after a period when Liaoning-style bronze daggers and other bronze artifacts were exchanged as far as the interior part of the Southern Peninsula (c. 900–700 BC). The bronze daggers lent prestige and authority to the personages who wielded and were buried with them in high-status megalithic burials at south-coastal centres such as the Igeum-dong site. Bronze was an important element in ceremonies and as for mortuary offerings until 100. The Mumun Pottery Period (Hanja: 無文土器時代, Hangeul: 무문토기시대 Mumun togi sidae) is an archaeological era in Korean prehistory that dates to approximately 1500-300 B.C. (Ahn 2000; Bale 2001; Crawford and Lee 2003). ... The Mumun Pottery Period (Hanja: 無文土器時代, Hangeul: 무문토기시대 Mumun togi sidae) is an archaeological era in Korean prehistory that dates to approximately 1500-300 B.C. (Ahn 2000; Bale 2001; Crawford and Lee 2003). ... This article is about the Korean Peninsula. ... Igeum-dong is a complex archaeological site located in Igeum-dong, Samcheonpo in Sacheon-si, South Gyeongsang Province, Korea. ...

Pontic-Caspian steppe

The Sredny Stog culture dates from 4500-3500 BC. It was situated just north of the Sea of Azov betweeen the Dnieper and the Don. ... Typical Yamna burial with the skeleton in supine position, with bent knees. ... Catacomb culture, ca. ... Srubna or Timber-grave culture, 16th-12th centuries BC. This is a bronze age successor to the Yamna culture, the Catacomb culture and the Abashevo culture. ...

Europe

A simplified map archaeological cultures of the late Bronze Age (c. ...

Central Europe

In Central Europe, the early Bronze Age Unetice culture (1800–1600 BCE) includes numerous smaller groups like the Straubing, Adlerberg and Hatvan cultures. Some very rich burials, such as the one located at Leubingen with grave gifts crafted from gold, point to an increase of social stratification already present in the Unetice culture. All in all, cemeteries of this period are rare and of small size. The Unetice culture is followed by the middle Bronze Age (1600–1200 BCE) Tumulus culture, which is characterised by inhumation burials in tumuli (barrows). In the eastern Hungarian Körös tributaries, the early Bronze Age first saw the introduction of the Mako culture, followed by the Ottomany and Gyulavarsand cultures. Central Europe is the region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe. ... Unetice, or more properly ÚnÄ›tice, culture, (German: Aunjetitz) is the name given to an early Bronze Age culture, preceded by the Beaker culture and followed by the Tumulus culture. ... Hatvan is a town in Heves county, Hungary. ... The Tumulus culture which followed the Únêtice, and from which they descended, dominated central Europe during much of the second part of the second millenium B.C.E.. As the name implies, the Tumulus culture is distinguished by the practice of burying the dead beneath burial mounds. ... Alternate meanings of barrow: see Barrow-in-Furness for the town of Barrow in Cumbria, England; also Barrow, Alaska in the U.S.; also River Barrow in Ireland. ... Körös is a Hungarian toponym with several meanings: Körös or CriÅŸ, a river that flows into Tisza, was used for an archeological site of the Starcevo-Körös culture Hungarian name for Križevci, was used for the historic Belovár-Körös county... The Ottomány culture in eastern Hungary is a local middle Bronze age culture (1600-1200 BC) near the village of Ottomány. ...

The late Bronze Age Urnfield culture, (1300–700 BCE) is characterized by cremation burials. It includes the Lusatian culture in eastern Germany and Poland (1300–500 BCE) that continues into the Iron Age. The Central European Bronze Age is followed by the Iron Age Hallstatt culture (700–450 BCE). The Urnfield culture of central European culture is dated roughly between 1300 BC and 750 BC. The name describes the custom of cremating the dead and placing them in cemeteries. ... A simplified map of the central European cultures, ca 1200 BC. The purple area is the Lusatian culture, the central blue area is the Knoviz culture, the red area is the central urnfield culture, and the orange area is the northern urnfield culture. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland In archaeology, the Iron Age is the stage in the development of any people where the use of iron implements as tools and weapons is preeminent. ... The Hallstatt culture was the predominant Central European culture during the local Bronze Age, and introduced the Iron Age. ...

Important sites include: This is a list of archaeological sites is sorted by country. ...

• Biskupin (Poland)
• Nebra (Germany)
• Vráble (Slovakia)
• Zug-Sumpf, Zug, Switzerland

The Bronze Age in Central Europe has been described in the chronological schema of German prehistorian Paul Reinecke. He described Bronze A1 (Bz A1) period (2300-2000 BCE : triangular daggers, flat axes, stone wrist-guards, flint arrowheads) and Bronze A2 (Bz A2) period (1950-1700 BCE : daggers with metal hilt, flanged axes, halberds, pins with perforated spherical heads, solid bracelets) and phases Hallstatt A and B (Ha A and B). Gate to the reconstructed settlement Biskupin is an archaeological site and a life-size model of an Iron Age fortified settlement (gród) in Poland, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodship. ... Nebra is a small city in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. ... Location of Vráble in Slovakia Vráble is a town in Slovakia. ...   (-German; French: Zoug; Italian: Zugo) is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. ...

Aegean

Bronze Age copper ingot found in Crete.

The Aegean Bronze Age begins around 3000 BCE when civilizations first established a far-ranging trade network. This network imported tin and charcoal to Cyprus, where copper was mined and alloyed with the tin to produce bronze. Bronze objects were then exported far and wide, and supported the trade. Isotopic analysis of the tin in some Mediterranean bronze objects indicates it came from as far away as Great Britain.^{[citation needed]} Aegean civilization is a general term for the Bronze Age civilizations of Greece and the Aegean. ... For other uses, see Crete (disambiguation). ... This article is about economic exchange. ... This article is about the metallic chemical element. ... For other uses, see Copper (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Isotope (disambiguation). ... The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ...

Knowledge of navigation was well developed at this time, and reached a peak of skill not exceeded (except by Polynesian sailors) until around CE 1750 when a method was discovered (or perhaps rediscovered) to determine longitude. This article is about determination of position and direction on or above the surface of the earth. ... Carving from the ridgepole of a Māori house, ca 1840 Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς many, νῆσος island) is a large grouping of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. ... CE is an abbreviation which can have the following meanings: Capillary electrophoresis the CE mark is a stylized CE placed on products to signify conformance with European Union regulations. ... Longitude is the east-west geographic coordinate measurement most commonly utilized in cartography and global navigation. ...

The Minoan civilization based from Knossos appears to have coordinated and defended its Bronze Age trade. The Minoan civilization was a bronze age civilization which arose on the island of Crete. ... A portion of Arthur Evans reconstruction of the Minoan palace at Knossos. ...

Illyrians are also believed to have roots in the early Bronze Age. Illyria (disambiguation) Illyrians has come to refer to a broad, ill-defined Indo-European[1] group of peoples who inhabited the western Balkans (Illyria, roughly from northern Epirus to southern Pannonia) and even perhaps parts of Southern Italy in classical times into the Common era, and spoke Illyrian languages. ...

One crucial lack in this period was that modern methods of accounting were not available. Numerous authorities^{[citation needed]} believe that ancient empires were prone to misvalue staples in favor of luxuries, and thereby perish by famines created by uneconomic trading. A staple food is a food that forms the basis of a traditional diet. ... A luxury sedan is an example of a luxury good. ...

Collapse in Aegean

How the Bronze Age ended in this region is still being studied. There is evidence that Mycenaean administration of the regional trade empire followed the decline of Minoan primacy. Evidence also exists that supports the assumption that several Minoan client states lost large portions of their respective populations to extreme famines and/or pestilence, which in turn would indicate that the trade network may have failed at some point, preventing the trade that would have previously relieved such famines and prevented some forms of illness (by nutrition). It is also known that the breadbasket of the Minoan empire, the area north of the Black Sea, also suddenly lost significant portions of its population, and thus probably some degree of cultivation in this era. The Bronze Age collapse is the name of the Dark Age period of history of the Ancient Middle East extending between the collapse of the Mycenaean kingdoms, the Hittite Empire in Anatolia and Syria, and the Egyptian Empire in Syria and Palestine between 1206 and 1150 BC, down to the... Mycenaean Greece, the last phase of the Bronze Age in ancient Greece, is the historical setting of the epics of Homer and much other Greek mythology. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Breadbasket of a country is a region which, because of richness of soil or advantageous climate, produces an agricultural surplus which is often considered vital for the country as a whole. ... For other uses, see Black Sea (disambiguation). ...

Mycenaean sword found in Eastern Europe

Recent research has discredited the theory that exhaustion of the Cypriot forests caused the end of the bronze trade. The Cypriot forests are known to have existed into later times, and experiments have shown that charcoal production on the scale necessary for the bronze production of the late Bronze Age would have exhausted them in less than fifty years. Charcoal is the blackish residue consisting of impure carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. ...

One theory says that as iron tools became more common, the main justification of the tin trade ended, and that trade network ceased to function as it once did. The individual colonies of the Minoan empire then suffered drought, famine, war, or some combination of these three factors, and thus they had no access to the far-flung resources of an empire by which they could easily recover. Fe redirects here. ... This article is about the instrument. ...

Another family of theories looks to Knossos itself. The Thera eruption occurred at this time, 110 kilometers (70 mi) north of Crete. Some authorities speculate that a tsunami from Thera destroyed Cretan cities. Others say that perhaps a tsunami destroyed the Cretan navy in its home harbour, which then lost crucial naval battles; so that in the LMIB/LMII event (c. 1450 BCE) the cities of Crete burned and the Mycenaean civilization took over Knossos. If the eruption occurred in the late 17th century BCE (as most chronologists now think), then its immediate effects belong to the Middle Bronze to Late Bronze Age transition, and not to the end of the Late Bronze Age; but it could have triggered the instability that led to the collapse first of Knossos and then of Bronze Age society overall. One such theory looks to the role of Cretan expertise in administering the empire, post-Thera. If this expertise was concentrated in Crete, then the Mycenaeans may have made crucial political and commercial mistakes when administering the Cretans' empire. Satellite image of Thera The devastating volcanic eruption of Thera in the Bronze Age (dated to ca. ... For other uses, see Tsunami (disambiguation). ... Naval redirects here. ... Model of the Palace of Minos on Kephala at the Museum in Iraklio. ... For other uses, see Crete (disambiguation). ... This article is about the Greek archaeological site. ... Mycenaean Greece, the last phase of the Bronze Age in ancient Greece, is the historical setting of the epics of Homer and much other Greek mythology. ...

More recent archaeological findings, including on the island of Thera (more commonly known today as Santorini), suggest that the center of Minoan Civilization at the time of the eruption was actually on this island rather than on Crete. Some think that this was the fabled Atlantis (a map drawn on a wall of a Minoan palace in Crete depicts an island similar to that described by Plato and similar too to the form Thera very likely had prior to its explosion). According to this theory, the catastrophic loss of the political, administrative and economic center by the eruption as well as the damage wrought by the tsunami to the coastal towns and villages of Crete precipitated the decline of the Minoans. A weakened political entity with a reduced economic and military capability and fabled riches would have then been more vulnerable to human predators. Indeed, the Santorini Eruption is usually dated to c. 1630 BCE. And, the Mycenaean Greeks first enter the historical record a few decades later c. 1600 BCE. Thus, the later Mycenaean assaults on Crete (c.1450 BC) and Troy (c.1250 BCE) are revealed as but continuations of the steady encroachments of the Greeks upon the weakened Minoan world.

Each of these theories is persuasive, and aspects of all of them may have some validity in describing the end of the Bronze Age in this region.

Italy

The Apennine culture is a late Bronze Age culture in the Apennines of Italy, dating from around 1350 to 1150 BC. It is contemporary to the late Terramare culture and succeeded by the Villanovan culture. ...

Iberian peninsula, France

Ceremonial giant dirk of the Plougrescant-Ommerschans type, Plougrescant, France, 1500–1300 BCE.

The so called Atlantic Bronze Age is a cultural complex of the approx. ...

Great Britain

In Great Britain, the Bronze Age is considered to have been the period from around 2100 to 750 BCE. Migration brought new people to the islands from the continent. Recent tooth enamel isotope research on bodies found in early Bronze Age graves around Stonehenge indicate that at least some of the migrants came from the area of modern Switzerland. The Beaker culture displayed different behaviours from the earlier Neolithic people and cultural change was significant. Integration is thought to have been peaceful as many of the early henge sites were seemingly adopted by the newcomers. The rich Wessex culture developed in southern Britain at this time. Additionally, the climate was deteriorating, where once the weather was warm and dry it became much wetter as the Bronze Age continued, forcing the population away from easily-defended sites in the hills and into the fertile valleys. Large livestock farms developed in the lowlands that appear to have contributed to economic growth and inspired increasing forest clearances. The Deverel-Rimbury culture began to emerge in the second half of the Middle Bronze Age (c. 1400–1100 BCE) to exploit these conditions. Devon and Cornwall were major sources of tin for much of western Europe and copper was extracted from sites such as the Great Orme mine in northern Wales. Social groups appear to have been tribal but with growing complexity and hierarchies becoming apparent. Net migration rates for 2006: positive (blue), negative (orange) and stable (green). ... For other uses, see Stonehenge (disambiguation). ... approximate extent of the Beaker culture The Bell-Beaker culture (sometimes shortened to Beaker culture, Beaker people, or Beaker folk; German: ), ca. ... An array of Neolithic artifacts, including bracelets, axe heads, chisels, and polishing tools. ... The Wessex culture is a name given to the predominant prehistoric culture of southern Britain during the early Bronze Age. ... Fljótsdalur in East Iceland, a rather flat valley In geology, a valley (also called a vale or dale) is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. ... The Deverel-Rimbury culture was a name given to an archaeological culture of the British Middle Bronze Age. ... For other uses, see Devon (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Cornwall (disambiguation). ... This article is about the metallic chemical element. ... For other uses, see Copper (disambiguation). ... Almost all that remains above ground of the Bishop of Bangors 13th century palace at Gogarth is the short wall on the left, the narrow column to the right of centre collapsed into the sea during the storms of March 2005 Saint Tudnos church, the original parish church... This article is about the country. ...

Also, the burial of dead (which until this period had usually been communal) became more individual. For example, whereas in the Neolithic a large chambered cairn or long barrow was used to house the dead, the Early Bronze Age saw people buried in individual barrows (also commonly known and marked on modern British Ordnance Survey maps as Tumuli), or sometimes in cists covered with cairns. A chambered cairn is a burial monument, usually constructed during the Neolithic, consisting of a cairn of stones inside which a sizeable (usually stone) chamber was constructed. ... A long barrow is a prehistoric monument dating to the Neolithic period. ... A tumulus (plural tumuli, from the Latin word for mound or small hill, from the root to bulge, swell also found in ) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. ... Part of an Ordnance Survey map at 1 inch to the mile scale from 1945 Ordnance Survey (OS) is an executive agency of the United Kingdom government. ... A cist (IPA ) is a small stone-built coffin-like box used to hold the bodies of the dead (notably during the Bronze Age in Britain and occasionally in Native American burials). ... For other uses, see Cairn (disambiguation). ...

The greatest quantities of bronze objects found in England were discovered in East Cambridgeshire, where the most important finds were recovered in Isleham (more than 6500 pieces).^[15] For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... East Cambridgeshire is a local government district in Cambridgeshire, England. ... Isleham is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Cambridgeshire. ... The Isleham Hoard is a hoard of more than 6500 pieces of worked and unworked bronze found in 1959 at Isleham in the English county of Cambridgeshire and dating from the Bronze Age. ...

Bronze Age boats

• Dover bronze age boat — the earliest known seagoing plank-built vessel
• Ferriby Boats
• Langdon Bay hoard — see also Dover Museum
• Divers unearth Bronze Age hoard off the coast of Devon
• Moor Sands finds, including a remarkably well preserved and complete sword which has parallels with material from the Seine basin of northern France

The Ferriby Boats are three Bronze Age sewn plank-built boats, parts of which were discovered at North Ferriby in the East Riding of the English county of Yorkshire. ... Dover Museum is a museum in Dover, Kent, in south-east England. ...

Ireland

The Bronze Age in Ireland commenced in the centuries around 2000 BCE when copper was alloyed with tin and used to manufacture Ballybeg type flat axes and associated metalwork. The preceding period is known as the Copper Age and is characterised by the production of flat axes, daggers, halberds and awls in copper. The period is divided into three phases: Early Bronze Age (2000–1500 BCE), Middle Bronze Age (1500–1200 BCE), and Late Bronze Age (1200 – c. 500 BCE). Ireland is also known for a relatively large number of Early Bronze Age burials. The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... The Chalcolithic (Greek khalkos + lithos copper stone) period or Copper Age period (also known as the Eneolithic (Aeneolithic)), is a phase in the development of human culture in which the use of early metal tools appeared alongside the use of stone tools. ... For the typographical mark, see dagger (typography). ... Swedish halberds from 16th century A halberd is a two-handed pole weapon that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries. ... Awl may refer to: Scratch awl, a tool with a long pointed spike used for marking wood. ... The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use) consisted of techniques for smelting copper and tin from naturally occurring outcroppings of ore, and then alloying those metals in order to cast bronze. ... The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use) consisted of techniques for smelting copper and tin from naturally occurring outcroppings of ore, and then alloying those metals in order to cast bronze. ... The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use) consisted of techniques for smelting copper and tin from naturally occurring outcroppings of ore, and then alloying those metals in order to cast bronze. ... The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use) consisted of techniques for smelting copper and tin from naturally occurring outcroppings of ore, and then alloying those metals in order to cast bronze. ... For the Prison Break episode, please see Buried (Prison Break episode) Underwater funeral in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea from an edition with drawings by Alphonse de Neuville and Edouard Riou. ...

One of the characteristic type of artifact of the Early Bronze Age in Ireland is the flat axe. There are five main types of flat axes: Lough Ravel (c. 2200 BCE), Ballybeg (c. 2000 BCE), Killaha (c. 2000 BCE), Ballyvalley (c. 2000–1600 BCE), Derryniggin (c. 1600 BCE), and a number of metal ingots in the shape of axes.^[16] The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ...

North Europe

Map of the Nordic Bronze Age culture, ca 1200 BC The Nordic Bronze Age (also Northern Bronze Age) is the name given by Oscar Montelius (1843-1921) to a period and a Bronze Age culture in Scandinavian pre-history, ca 1800 BC - 600 BC, with sites that reached as far...

Americas

The Inca civilization of South America independently discovered and developed bronze smelting [1]. Later appearance of limited bronze smelting in West Mexico (see Metallurgy in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica) suggests either contact of that region with the Incas or separate discovery of the technology. The emergence of metallurgy in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica occurred relatively late in the regions history, with distinctive works of metal apparent in West Mexico by roughly AD 800, and perhaps as early as AD 600 (Hosler, 1988, 1995). ...

See also

• Synoptic table of the principal old world prehistoric cultures
• Three age system

The table gives a rough picture of the relationships between the various principal cultures of Prehistory outside the Americas, Antarctica, Australia and Oceania. ... The three-age system is a system of classifying human prehistory into three consecutive time periods, named for their respective predominant tool-making technologies: The Stone Age The Bronze Age The Iron Age It was introduced by the Dane Christian Jürgensen Thomsen in the 1820s in order to classify...

Notes

David Keys is archaeology correspondent for the London daily paper, The Independent, frequent television commentator on archaeological matters and author of the controversial book, Catastrophe: A Quest for the Origins of the Modern World (1999). ... BBC History is a magazine devoted to history enthusiasts of all levels of knowledge and interest. ...

References

• Eogan, George (1983) The hoards of the Irish later Bronze Age, Dublin : University College, 331p., ISBN 0-901120-77-4
• Hall, David and Coles, John (1994) Fenland survey : an essay in landscape and persistence, Archaeological report 1, London : English Heritage, 170 p., ISBN 1-85074-477-7
• Pernicka, E., Eibner, C., Öztunah, Ö., Wagener, G.A. (2003) "Early Bronze Age Metallurgy in the Northeast Aegean", In: Wagner, G.A., Pernicka, E. and Uerpmann, H-P. (eds), Troia and the Troad : scientific approaches, Natural science in archaeology, Berlin; London : Springer, ISBN 3-540-43711-8, p. 143–172
• Waddell, John (1998) The prehistoric archaeology of Ireland, Galway University Press, 433 p., ISBN 1-901421-10-4
• Siklosy et al. (2009): Bronze Age volcanic event recorded in stalagmites by combined isotope and trace element studies. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, 23/6, 801-808. [DOI: 10.1002/rcm.3943] http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/122202090/abstract

External links

• Web index Bronze Age in Europe
• Ancient tin: old question and a new answer
• Pretanic World - Bronze Age Britain
• Pretanic World - Bronze Age Ireland
• Bronze Age Experimental Archeology and Museum Reproductions
• Hypothetical reconstruction of a Lusatian culture settlement, raised using only bronze age tools - Wola Radziszowska (near Cracow) - Poland
• Umha Aois - Reconstructed Bronze Age metal casting
• Umha Aois - ancient bronze casting videoclip
• Reconstructing the Danish Trundholm Sun Chariot
• Aegean and Balkan Prehistory: Articles, site-reports and bibliography database concerning the Aegean, Balkans and Western Anatolia